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Ben here with today's #BenInNature update presented by our friends at Carter Bank & Trust! This week, we're looking at some of my favorite never-before-seen photos of critters we've looked at previously. Today's pick: the eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens), one of the most photogenic little critters you're liable to find out in the woods here in southwest Virginia! This particular eastern newt is in the "red eft" stage of life, which is when these newts are easiest to find. If you go out into the woods in the spring or summer shortly after a rainstorm and keep your eyes on the ground, you're pretty likely to spot one! These newts have quite an unusual life cycle. They begin their lives as aquatic larvae, and ...